THE Yuchengco’s education group has agreed to merge with the educational unit of Ayala Corp., which will see the Mapua Institute of Technology and Apec Schools under one roof.
The deal involved iPeople Inc. and AC Education Inc. (ACEI) executing a nonbinding term sheet for their potential merger. iPeople is the listed holding company for the education sector of House of Investments Inc., a member of the Yuchengco Group of Cos. ACEI, meanwhile, is the wholly owned education arm of Ayala Corp.
Under the nonbinding term sheet, the parties agreed to an exclusivity period to complete due diligence and to finalize the terms and conditions of the proposed merger within the first quarter of 2018, the companies said in a joint statement. iPeople was identified as the surviving entity after the merger.
“All terms and conditions of the proposed merger, including the involvement of House of Investments and Ayala Corp. in the management of…iPeople, shall be presented for approval by the parties’ respective boards of directors and merging parties’ stockholders, and the transaction will be subject to the requisite regulatory approvals, as well,” the statement said.
The potential merger will see Malayan Education System Inc., which operates under the name of Mapua University, a leading private engineering and technical university in the country, merge with Ayala’s Apec Schools, a relatively new entrant in the education industry following the introduction of the senior high school system. The Yuchengco firm also owns Malayan Colleges Laguna and Malayan Colleges Mindanao. Ayala owns University of Nueva Caceres, one of the oldest and largest universities in Bicol. Together, the combined population would be over 40,000 students.
“We are looking forward to this potential merger. Mapua’s reputation as a leading private engineering and technical university in the country, together with ACEI’s ability to provide quality education leading to enhanced employability, at an affordable price, would enable the Yuchengco Group of Cos. and Ayala Corp. to jointly contribute to the improvement of the quality of education in the Philippines, for the benefit of all sectors of society,” Helen Y. Dee, chairman of House of Investments, said in a statement.
“We are very pleased about this opportunity to partner with the Yuchengco Group of Cos. to help build our nation through education. Our belief is that the potential combination of iPeople and ACEI would create significant synergies that would enable us to better equip students for compelling futures,” Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala, chairman and CEO of Ayala Corp., was quoted in a statement as saying.